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Your so right, know that I understand what if means it completely changes the hair pulling statement to a perfectly reasonable one. I mean it's not like the Cubs couldn't trout out 3/5 of an anti-awful rotation without doing anything amazing and drastic in 2014 or 2015. When dealing with someone who intellect is clearly my superior I don't know weather to bow down and kiss your feet or write a script for Seroquel.

Getting 3/5ths of a non-awful rotation out of what we currently have under control for 2014/15 *would* take some pretty amazing good fortune.

Wouldn't it only take resigning Garza, Samardjiza keeping up his peripherals from 2012 and then one of: Baker (causing them to resign him) Feldman (causing them to resign him), Vizcaino, Loux, or Wood being a decent number 4?

Wouldn't it only take resigning Garza, Samardjiza keeping up his peripherals from 2012 and then one of: Baker (causing them to resign him) Feldman (causing them to resign him), Vizcaino, Loux, or Wood being a decent number 4?

That seems...not that hard to me.....

Pitchers are incredibly fickle. They fall apart all the time, and that's even before you consider the ones who get hurt.

On that list, you've got three guys with major injury problems in the very recent past, three guys without a full useful MLB season as a starting pitcher, and a borderline future Casey Coleman who seems very oddly placed on such a list.

Getting three of those guys to be good in 2014 is possible, but would take quite a bit of good fortune.

And that's even assuming Garza is interested in resigning here. If he has faith in his elbow, I could see him flat refusing to resign given that he'd be pretty much the top starting pitcher on the market and in line for a huuuuge payday.

Wouldn't it only take resigning Garza, Samardjiza keeping up his peripherals from 2012 and then one of: Baker (causing them to resign him) Feldman (causing them to resign him), Vizcaino, Loux, or Wood being a decent number 4?

That seems...not that hard to me.....

Samardzija seems like a good candidate and the rest could be difficult. Hasn't it been reported the Cubs stopped taking extension with Garza when he wanted a no trade clause ? Isn't there a better chance of Baker/Feldman being flipped than resigned ? Vizcaino/Loux will spend most the year in AAA.
Wood could stay as a solid back of the rotation starter.

Your persistent need for indignation and hyperbole does not improve the quality of your points, and seeing as that's all you have given, it leaves you with nothing.

Back at ya.

On to your points.

Pitchers are fickle and injury prone. If you want to go with that then no MLB team should be able to count on having a rotation for 2014 or 2015 because they may break down.

Samardzija threw 174.2 innings before he was shut down as a precaution. He had no drop in velocity and was a hole 14.2 innings from the magic number of 190. I think he could be counted on to do the same next year.

Garza resigning with the Cubs wouldn't be dramatic or amazing. The Cubs need pitching, have money, he seems to like Chicago. I think there might be a match there.

Wood threw 197 IP between AAA/Chicago. I'm going for non-awful in 2014-2015 so I think he can count. That gets you to 3/5 of an anti-awful rotation without one addition to the organization.

To fill out this anti-awful rotation the Cubs could sign a couple of free agents in the Baker/Feldman class, Vizcaino could prove to be a starter, the #2 pick could be a pitcher and move through the minors quickly, Baker/Feldman/Marmol/Barney/Soriano/Jackson/Vitters could all be moved and might net a pitcher or 2. None of these moves are drastic or amazing and the Cubs could end up with some decent pitching depth.

I think you bring up some good points, but your constant hair pulling/world is ending/I'm the smartest guy in the room gets tiring.

Pitchers are fickle and injury prone. If you want to go with that then no MLB team should be able to count on having a rotation for 2014 or 2015 because they may break down.

Absolutely. But the teams that are in the best shape are the ones with the most depth at the MLB level and near-ready. We are incredibly thin in that area.

Samardzija threw 174.2 innings before he was shut down as a precaution. He had no drop in velocity and was a hole 14.2 innings from the magic number of 190. I think he could be counted on to do the same next year.

I think that's foolishly optimistic. He might be able to do the same next year, but he's done it precisely once.

Garza resigning with the Cubs wouldn't be dramatic or amazing. The Cubs need pitching, have money, he seems to like Chicago. I think there might be a match there.

I'd find it very amazing if the Cubs both wanted to resign him and he wanted to resign with the Cubs.

Wood threw 197 IP between AAA/Chicago. I'm going for non-awful in 2014-2015 so I think he can count. That gets you to 3/5 of an anti-awful rotation without one addition to the organization.

When a guy keeps getting bounced back to AAA, you should wonder if maybe you should count him as a full portion of a non-awful rotation.

To fill out this anti-awful rotation the Cubs could sign a couple of free agents in the Baker/Feldman class,

Huge potential for awful there.

Vizcaino could prove to be a starter

Probably not. It might happen, but pretty much only the Cubs internally seem to think he can stick as a starter. And I think that's more desperation than scouting.

, the #2 pick could be a pitcher and move through the minors quickly,

It would take some dramatic good fortune for a college SP to emerge who could hit the majors and succeed n less than a year in the minors, let alone have him drop to No. 2 in the draft.

Baker/Feldman/Marmol/Barney/Soriano/Jackson/Vitters could all be moved and might net a pitcher or 2. None of these moves are drastic or amazing and the Cubs could end up with some decent pitching depth.

I'm still waiting for all those young starting pitchers we got in exchange for last year's trade deadline haul to show up.

I think you bring up some good points, but your constant hair pulling/world is ending/I'm the smartest guy in the room gets tiring.

I made my points. You said something incredibly stupid in response. If you had responded like you just did, instead of you're whole "OH MAN YOU SAID THERE'S NO CHANCE" and "LET'S NOT TALK ABOUT FUTURE SEASONS BESIDES THE IMMEDIATE ONE IN THE ORGANIZATIONAL PHILOSOPHY THREAD," you would have gotten a different response. I called that stupid, correctly. You can be as offended as you want, but you brought it on yourself.

Pretty much. Acquiring good starting pitching in this market is pretty drastic, because it's incredibly sought after right now. If a good pitcher comes available on the trade market, we'll have to outbid a lot of people.